Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-10-21

unravelling the mystery that covered the
flight or fate of Claire.
Mrs. Cnilllngton had heard nothing of
her since her marriage. She remembered
well that the girl looked so pretty in her
lawn tennis suit OF white flannel faced
with light blue silk, with white and blue
cap to match, set coquettishly on one side
OF her sunny hair; but that was all, eX-
cept that she welded her racquet easily
and moved swiftly and gracefully. But
now she drew her pen through The names
of Captain and Mrs. Montressor IN her
visiting list. and straightway thought no
more about them.
Claire had been 20 Chillington Rectory,
where her wretched story had preceded
Digby's visit, and broken the heart of
the aged rector, and he found him dead.
Dead! What must the poor old man
have thought of him ere mental agony
crushed out his true, gentle and loving
spirit? And what must Claire, wherever
she was, think of him now?
1t was all too dreadful to ponder over.
He felt inclined to shoot himself, and end
it all-all so far IS this Wretched world
was concerned.
In time DigbY's solicitors had discover
ed that his first supposed wife was doubly
sham-sne was not and never had been
named Irene Beaufort, but was, in reality,
ere she turned up at Brighton, the runs-
way spouse of Mr.. Tudor Chuckerbutty,
comedian of very mediocre theatrical
position, who, for due consideration, at
once came forward to assert his marital
rights, and when too late, apparently, to
free Digby Montressor of all further
trouble.
So Claire had passed completely out of
the life OF the latter, though not out of
his tortured memory, when he sailed with
Lonsdale in the Pagoda to reioin his reg
iment.
CHAPTER xxIII.-EvENTs AT ROSE COT
TAGE.
"Thank God he IS gone" was the
thought of Mr.. Gideon Gr'mshaw, as he
pulled up his gill-like shirt collar with
satisfaction, on seeing the departure of
the Pagoda, P. and O. liner, from South
ampton, announced in the morning paper.
"I always feared that some condolences
of his might spoil all at Rsvensbourne;
but he has gone in silence, behaved like q
trump in that respect, and now we have
the tield and the baronet to ourselves"
The "we" referred to Mrs. Chillington;
after an absence from home of some days,
Sir Brisco's letters to them came to hand,
and made them aware that he knew fully
tanglement with-which you will-Cap-
tain Lonsdale" So the worthy pair
feared they might have rather difficult
their net for Melanie; and Mrs. Chilling
t0p inn hnr
any suspicion of espionage, was vehement
and bitter in her denunciation of what
she termed "unseemly out-of-door phil
andering."
Melanie felt that it was terrible to have
the great and tender secret of her heart
so roughly dragged into the light of day
by these two old conspirstoIs again and
again; and she had particular dread of
her Aunt Chillington coming sWoop down
upon her, for that lady, with all her state
illness, her magnificent white hair and
charming little feet and hands, had 8
great strength of will and purpose, as her
full, square chin and sterD, straight
Tipped mouth evinced. She was dame
who thoroughly knew her own mind, and
always got her own way, by sheer dint of
logged intention.
After what he had, so much TO his own
annoyance and modification, discovered,
Sir Brisco for time purposely svoided
Rose Cottage, to let Melanie settle down
and become composed, and meanwhile,
when September came, so!aced himself
with cub-hunting.
Her mad infstuation for young officer,
who had merely crossed her path, and
had only his good looks and V. G. to
recommend him, would, he doubted not,
die out with absence and separation; ana
he never believed in the theory that the
latter made the heart grow fonder.
At forty years Of age a man takes q
love trouble badly, but at sixty it be-
comes, we should suppose, kind Of
quiet obstinaCy to persist in it.
Melanie was no longer worried now,
after her absences, when visiting or ram
bling, by seeing Uncle Grimshaw con-
fronting her, repeater in hand, with an
ominous frown on his narrow brow and
suspicious glare in his pale eyes.
With the departure of Montague Ions
dale, the chief occupation OF her life, lat
terlv, was gone; and already she had be-
gun to reckon the weary dsys-days so
piteously weary and yague-that she must
live without him.
"What have we done, Montague and I,
that we should have learned to love each
other, and then be so rudely parted, it
may be for life-for life perhaps?" was
often her aching thought.
Forget him! They hoped she would,
Judging by their own hearts; but in mem
DRY his face was ever before her, without
the aid of photography: his voice ever in
her ears, and the fond hopes that could
end only with life, she thought,
were high in her soul; but
nothing save these memories came
to her just then, and the vacant
greyness OF existence at Rose Cottages:
nor would she have tidings of him till the
steamer reached Port Ssid, probsbly;
but to her Joy she had letters from head
quarters, from Southampton, from Malta,
and from Egypt; and then she could but
read them in succession over and over
again, for she knew that she should hear
no more until ne reached the shore of
India.
These letters were all duly delivered to
her by the postman, but now Uncle Grim
shaw thought of introducing locked
ter-bag for the cottage, & bag of which
he possessed the key, and with what view
we shall show
After the Port Said letter, how fat,
stale, colorless and Improbable seemed
now that he was far eway to the stirring
scenes of his military career IN the far
east; and it seemed as yet vain task to
count the days of his absence, or reckon
on time of his return.